Melissa-2

Melissa Low

Academic qualifications

L.LM in Climate Change Law and Policy, University of Strathclyde

M.Sc. in Environmental Management, National University of Singapore

B.Soc.Sci in Geography (Hons) with Minor in Urban Studies, National University of Singapore

Research areas

Climate change and international environmental law; transparency of climate action and reporting in Southeast Asia

Research interest

Melissa’s research focuses on the transformative promise of transparency reporting, particularly on how it can increase the level of accountability of governments and stakeholders in ensuring environmental integrity when they enhance their climate ambition.

Biography

Melissa Low is a Research Fellow at the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Centre for Nature-based Climate Solutions. She previously worked at the Energy Studies Institute, NUS where she carried out research projects on a range of energy and climate issues of concern to Singapore and the region. She has participated in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties (COP) for over a decade and is an active sustainability thought leader, authoring, publishing and presenting at various forums.

She is the Designated Contact Point for NUS’s accreditation to the UNFCCC and serves on the nine-member Steering Committee of the Research and Independent Non-Governmental Organisation (RINGO) Constituency under the UNFCCC. She is also is a Member of the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP) Long Term Aspirational Goal Task Group (LTAG-TG). Melissa holds an LLM in Climate Change Law and Policy (with distinction) from the University of Strathclyde, MSc in Environmental Management and BSocSci (Hons) in Geography from NUS. For her Master’s thesis on past and contemporary proposals on equity and differentiation in shaping the 2015 climate agreement, Melissa was awarded the Shell Best Dissertation Award 2013. She is currently pursuing a PhD part-time at the NUS Department of Geography.

In 2021, Melissa was conferred the NEA EcoFriend Award and the Public Service Medal (Pingat Bakti Masyarakat) for her contributions towards environmental sustainability, climate change awareness and impact on youth. She serves as Chair of the Climate Action SG Alliance, is an Advisory Committee Member for the MSE SG Eco Fund, a Council Member of the 16th and 17th National Youth Council and Committee Member of the Speak Good English Movement. She is also Chief Curator of the National Youth Council’s Young ChangeMakers Programme and a panellist on the Speak Good English Movement Programmes Evaluation Panel.

Selected publications

  1. Low, Melissa, Tan, Jing Ling, Tan, Xin Yi, Singapore’s Carbon Tax Hike and Climate Ambition, ESI Policy Brief no. 52, 11 March 2022.
  2. Low, Melissa and Bea, Eric, COP26 Article 6 Outcomes: Untangling the Spaghetti, ESI Policy Brief no. 50, 29 November 2021.
  3. Low, Melissa, and Chamling Rai, Sandeep, Key Outcomes of COP26: The Glasgow Climate Pact, ESI Policy Brief no. 49, 25 November 2021.
  4. Low, Melissa, COP26 and the Importance of Article 6: Implications for Southeast Asia, ESI Policy Brief no. 48, 22 October 2021.
  5. Low, Melissa, and Bea, Eric, Maximising Singapore's Readiness as a Carbon Service Hub, ESI Policy Brief no. 47, 22 October 2021.
  6. Low, Melissa, and Bea, Eric, Update on the May-June 2021 Climate Change Conference on the Road to Glasgow, ESI Policy Brief no. 44, 7 June 2021.
  7. Quirapas-Franco, Mary Ann, Low, Melissa, and Ng, Alex, The Role of the Blue Economy in Singapore’s Sustainable Energy Transition, ESI Policy Brief no. 43, 27 May 2021

Features and publications in popular media

  1. Low, Melissa, in “Ask the Finance Minister”, Channel NewsAsia, 22 February 2022
  2. Melissa Low, “Commentary: Bad news for Singapore’s oil and gas industry as young people shun fossil fuels?”, Channel NewsAsia, Singapore. 13 February 2022.
  3. Low, Melissa, “Commentary: Singapore’s climate ambition finally up to speed with international developments”, Channel NewAsia, Singapore.  19 February 2022.
  4. Low, Melissa “Clarity around global carbon markets can drive growth in carbon services, trading | Video”, Channel NewsAsia, Singapore. 29 November 2021.
  5. Low, Melissa, “Beyond pledges, transparency also important to ensure progress tracked”, The Straits Times, Singapore. 25 October 2021.
  6. Low, Melissa and Broadstock, David. “Commentary: The merits of Singapore’s new carbon trading marketplace”, Channel NewsAsia, Singapore. 12 June 2021.

Conferences and presentations

  1. Channel NewsAsia, COP26 report card: Progress but yet more room for improvement?, The Climate Conversations Podcast, 19 November 2021.
  2. The Straits Times, Much ado over carbon markets, credits and COP26 negotiations, Green Pulse Podcast, 3 November 2021.
  3. The Straits Times, Implications for Asean at COP26, Green Pulse Podcast, 1 November 2021.